Revamps 2022 Issue

c) The contractors will have no incentive for innovation for the same reason as before. We believe it is not a matter of quantity of workers but much of quality and value: a good professional can give more value than a few average ones (the old 80/20 rule is still much valid). The solutions we propose can be sum- marised as follows: a) The oil and gas industry should invest more in enhancing its image and attracting talent and the younger generation b) Low labour-intensive technologies should be preferred to high ones c) Highly sustainable technologies should be preferred (with special reference to SDGs referring to good health, decent work, innovation, responsible production) d) Priority should be given to innovative contractors, who can improve SDGs and lower labor requirements e) Priority should be given to contractors with skilled per- sonnel, with proven qualities to give value to customers f) A scoring model should be developed in bids, to take into account the above priorities and to disengage from lower price. A Lindsay Shumate, Senior HR Generalist, KBC (A Yokogawa Company), lindsay.shumate@kbc.global: The worldwide oil and gas industry faces a shortage of well-qualified skilled workers. A shortage of skills can frus - trate firms. Besides hindering their safety, it can also reduce their productivity. While many skills take years to develop or an investment to acquire, oil and gas companies can take several steps to fill the gaps of talent shortage. When looking externally to fill these gaps for more immediate staffing needs, many SMEs in the industry have become subcontractors to remain focused on their specialty area of interest, which is quite helpful to have these indi- viduals on contract to assign project work on an as-needed basis. While hourly rates for SMEs can be quite higher than what is normally seen on an average salary, only paying for this time based on project needs has some advantages to reduce other payroll costs and that could better suit the subcontractors’ work/life balance while maintaining the ability to carry a variety of projects in their interests. When looking internally to fill staffing gaps with well- qualified individuals, this should be considered a continuous investment that is more rewarding, not only for the individ- ual seeking development but also bodes well for company culture with a likely reduction of attrition or staff turnover. Many early- to mid-level craftsman seek and express appre - ciation for company investment in developing their talents further and have been proven to remain in tenure of their position for longer. To accelerate internal ‘upskilling’, one of the best ways to fast-track learning is through in-house mentoring programmes. Pairing a protégé with a mentor who has already mas- tered the skill(s) allows the protégé to learn the skills nec- essary to succeed through a psychologically safe working relationship – typically, a mentor is not the reporting man- ager. An alternative approach includes offering on-the-job (OTJ) skill-based training. OTJ training programmes may consist of either workshop sessions, long-term rotational

assignments in a practical environment that last from a few months to two years, or a combination of both. Another option involves targeting skilled workers from other industries, such as manufacturing or construction since these individuals have highly transferrable skills that can be applied to the oil and gas industry. Next, vocational education has an important role to play in matching employ- ers’ needs with workers’ skills, knowledge, and qualifica - tions in the oil and gas industry. Finally, businesses and their stakeholders can get involved in manufacturing events and organisations, such as the Manufacturing Institute, to sup - port career training and trade skills education. Q How receptive do you think the industry is to the push to digitalise the repair processes of compressor components, such as valves, packing cases, piston and rod assemblies, to facilitate tracking each single maintenance event? A Nina Hirsch, Vice President, Market Segment Compressor Service, Strategic Business Unit Compression Technology, Hoerbiger, nina.hirsch@hoerbiger.com: We clearly see across the industry the common under- standing that digitalisation is not only important but viable for successful business operations in the long run. In most cases, receptiveness depends very much on an organisa- tion’s company culture and digital maturity. In the end, it is very simple – to achieve value gains in pro - duction optimisation and along the value chain, data has to be collected and thus certain transactions, like maintenance events, recorded. The goal is to spot trends and abnor- malities supporting information-based decision-making. Regarding our digital spare parts and proprietary VISTRA performance assistant, this means an immediate benefit by gaining deep insights into someone’s compressor fleet per - formance and bad actors down to component level. If these outcomes are perceived as value-add and provide benefits to the overall company’s goals, receptiveness is not just very high but naturally given. A Kevin Clarke, Chief Strategy Officer, Imubit, kevin. clarke@imubit.com: This type of advanced digital preparation and tracking of maintenance activity is already happening with some vision- ary operators. A digital environment has been deployed that has a complete task breakdown from equipment shutdown and preparation for maintenance, specific maintenance activities, start-up readiness, and reinstatement to operation. Each task within the maintenance process is linked to the others to understand if tasks can be carried out in parallel or series, what tools and parts are required (tied into the stores system), any lifting or access considerations (scaf- folding), permitting requirements and their preparation, and the personnel selection for the job based on skills required and competencies of the individuals available on the day. The software captures the start and completion time of each task, which can be used for benchmarking and continuous improvement of future similar maintenance activities or used to drive standardisation and implementation of best prac- tices across multiple sites within a larger corporate group.

Revamps 2022